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Brava municipality (Cabo Verde)

Konsedju di Dja Braba

Last modified: 2026-02-28 by antónio martins
Keywords: brava | braba | wild | kingfisher | sun (yellow on blue) | island | waves | hibiscus | music notes | paper boat | anchor (black) | roses: 3 | tower (yellow) | quartered: yellow red | coat of arms: chief |
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[flag]
image by Valentin Poposki, 04 Aug 2022 | (source)


See also:


About the municipality

Brava is one of 22 municipalities of Cabo Verde. Town of Nova Sintra was/is a town and seat of the municipality of Brava.
Valentin Poposki, 04 Aug 2022

Brava island (plus a few islets, not counted to the 10) is one of four islands that comprise a single municipality.
António Martins, 01 Apr 2016 and 16 Nov 2017


About the flag

Its flag is white with municipal logo on it.
Valentin Poposki, 04 Aug 2022

A few photos of the local town hall in Nova Sintra shows the national flag and what seems to be a white flag with the emblem on it. (These photos also witness a change, seemingly in the mid 2010s, in the arrangement of the flag poles, which were changed from two wall-mounted angled poles between windows to three balcony-mounted angled poles, but none was found detailed enough to illustrate the flag design: R.T.C., R.F.I., aNação, BravaNews, Publ.CV.)
António Martins, 15 Nov 2017 and 31 Dec 2025

The emblem has the usual 4 green chainlinks flanked by two arcs of 5 yellow stars, and a red scroll underneath.
António Martins, 30 Dec 2025


Emblem detail

The emblem has a round “shield”, as usual, mostly blue with red scroll (of the stylized type). It can be seen on the pediment of a mall/market run by the municipality (unveiled in April 2016)
António Martins, 15 Nov 2017

The circular shield is cyan (light blue), sky over sea, the latter with white waves, an black island on the horizon under a yellow sun, and in the forground a very stylized paper boat, carrying a large red hibiscus flower, with a kingfisher perched at its prow, and issuing a waft of white musical notes.
António Martins, 30 Dec 2025

Of this emblem at least three variants exist, and at least two can be seen used on a white flag. The variations are:
type →bac
feature
[b] [a] [c]
sun solid, +clouds gradient solid
bird Ispidina picta
(African pygmy
kingfisher)
Halcyon leucocephala acteon
(Greyheaded Kingfisher)
turned neck
island dexter half whole width
boat at sinister,
cleared away from the island
in foreground,
over the island
waves white/cyan
gradient
solid white
sources as logo:
[1]
as logo:
[2] [3]
on flag:
[4] [5] [6] [7]
It would be necessary to determine which combinations of these known variables are actually used in flag form.
António Martins, 30 Dec 2025 and 31 Dec 2025

The birds are Ispidina picta (the African pygmy kingfisher) and Halcyon leucocephala acteon (the Greyheaded Kingfisher), a subspecies endemic to the islands. They are both looking forwards — however one is perched facing backwards, but with turned neck. (The kingfisher motif, in the form of the latter species, was also used, during the 2016 local elections, in its logo by a local party of nearby Fogo island.)
António Martins, 31 Dec 2025

Another detail common to both versions is the scroll, red with white edging at top and bottom, itself outlined (in black or red) especially when on white background, as on the flag. The scroll text reads "Câmara Municipal da Brava", which is incorrect — should be "Município da Brava", refering to the actual armigerous entity, or simply the toponym "Brava" (or "Braba", pá, passam já quinhentos anos!).
António Martins, 31 Dec 2025

The hibiscus flower has red petals but orange pistil — which is barely distinguishable on the flag, but visible when seen up close / in large size.
António Martins, 31 Dec 2025

This is one of three among the 22 municipal emblems of Cabo Verde to show musical symbols — the others being mun. São Domingos and mun. São Vicente.
António Martins, 30 Dec 2025


Colonial era flag

Sal mun. flag
image by Sérgio Horta and António Martins, 31 Dec 2025 | (source)

The colonial-era municipal flag was a typical Portuguese municipal flag, consisting of a 2:3 yellow over red quartered background with the coat of arms centered on it. Mural crown Argent with four visible towers (town rank) and white scroll reading in black upper case serifed letters "Vila de Nova Sintra". The banner should have golden and purple (!) tassels and cord, and golden staff with a spear finial. Flag and arms approved by the Overseas Ministry in Ministerial Diploma (Diploma Legislativo Ministerial) n.º 5 and published in the official journal (of the colony) Boletim Oficial de Cabo Verde : I Série : 13.º Suplemento of 1955.05.28.
António Martins, 31 Dec 2025

Its symbols were published in the Official Bulletin on 28.05.1955. Flag - Quartered in yellow and red. Cords and tassels of gold and purple. Golden spear.
Valentin Poposki, 04 Aug 2022

At HeraldicaCivica.PT we can see Sérgio Horta’s account of these arms and flag, drawn in the same style as contemporary CHAAP artwork; other sources, such as [lgh66] and postage stamps, may differ in details.
António Martins, 31 Dec 2025

Simplified version without the coat of arms

[flag]
image by António Martins, 29 Feb 2010

Non-monocolored portuguese subnational flags are allowed to have armless variations.
Jorge Candeias, 18 Jul 1999

While the current law, adopted in 1991, doesn’t apply to municipal flags in the colonies, independent in 1975, it however draws most of its content from the 1930 ministerial dispatch, incl. the regulation of armless variations allowed for non-monocolor municipal flags. This 1930 ruling affected all future Portuguese municipal flags, including the colonial ones.
António Martins, Feb 2026

Arms detail

Sal mun. flag
image by Sérgio Horta and António Martins, 31 Dec 2025 | (source)

The arms have on a shield Or an anchor Sable cordoned Argent accompanied by three roses Argent seeded and barbed Gules and in chief the arms of Sintra minus its crags.

De ouro, uma âncora de negro, encordoada de prata, contida por três rosas do mesmo, abotoadas, raiadas e circundadas de vermelho. Em chefe as armas da vila de Sintra sem os penhascos. Coroa mural de quatro torres de prata. Listel branco com os dizeres "VILA DE NOVA SINTRA". Bandeira - Esquartelada de amarelo e vermelho. Cordões e borlas de ouro e púrpura. Lança e hasta douradas.
António Martins, 14 Dec 2025

Nova Sintra arms - Of gold, an anchor in black, strung with silver, contained by three roses of the same, buttoned, streaked and encircled in red. In chief the arms of the town of Sintra without the cliffs.
Valentin Poposki, 04 Aug 2022

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